Always Have Tomorrow
by marxistqueens
Summary: An older Jack Hodgins reminisces on his relationship with anthropologist Temperance Brennan.


**Disclaimer: I do not own _Bones _or any associated characters. **

**Pairing requested by **artigiano, **who also betaed. **

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He wondered what time Temperance would get home that night.

They'd both long-since retired the high-flying life of fighting crime and getting buried alive. Temperance had returned to her previous lifestyle of many years ago, investigating foreign and archaic civilisations and cataloguing the history of the human world. It made him proud to know that despite everything she'd been through, she continued to give so much back to the world that had so often scarred her. His fighter, as always.

As for him, he still did analysations once in awhile. He _was _one of the leading experts in the field, after all, and there were many in the government who felt that nobody could match up to the prowess of Jack Stanley Hodgins and he was often called upon to give his professional opinion. But his main passion was still bugs, and he exercised his passion by being the Head of Entomology at the Smithsonian. Often genial, he would come in early, check on all of his insects and spend the day teaching fourth-graders how to properly hold a tarantula without freaking out. They reminded him of his grandchildren, who had inherited from him a healthy appreciation for everything insect.

On nights like this when he was alone on the front porch and watching the sun set with a glass of Long Island iced tea, he would go back in his ageing mind and remember how it had all happened. If he had to pinpoint a moment, a single second, that he had fallen in love with her, it would have to be in that damned car.

Jack, a man conspiracy and paranoia, had still never dreamt that he would end up being buried alive, much less with a beautiful anthropologist. She kept it together while he didn't. They talked, and once, she attempted sleep. He was stunned at how soft and vulnerable she seemed with dirt on her face and her eyes closed. It was then, when she let her guard down that he finally admitted to himself what he'd been feeling for a long time: he was in love with Temperance Brennan and there was no denying it. He had told her he was in love with Angela to cover it up. He didn't want to scare her off.

However, as he watched Agent Booth hold her after being pulled out of the gravel, he had known: they'd never be together.

So he gave up hope. He watched her from afar as he tinkered around with dirt and bugs, watched her relationship with Booth blossom. The tension between the agent and the anthropologist was undeniable, and he was loathe to come between the two. Better to be selfless. Better to move on.

He fell in love. He married. He started growing up and forgetting his silly crush.

Smiling now, he remembered his first wife. _Angela, _he thought fondly. A part of him would always love her, especially after the conversation that led to their divorce. A true angel, that woman.

_Jack, we need to talk, _she had surprised him by saying one night over dinner. _Don't be afraid, but we need to talk about something. _

_Yes? _he had responded, his roast beef suddenly sticking in his throat.

She had taken a deep breath, the lines around her dark eyes creasing in thought. _I know that you're in love with her, Jack. She's our best friend, and she's an amazing woman. Why shouldn't you be?_

_Angela - _he'd started to say, but she cut him off with a wave of her hand.

_I'm not upset, _she had continued. _Believe me, I'm not upset. I have a feeling that you loved her long before you loved me. Hell, even I've had a crush on the girl before. There are just some things you can't deny, and I'd feel like a criminal if I got in the way of your happiness… especially,_ she said with a smile, _since I know that the woman has feelings for you too. And it hasn't just been since Booth broke her heart. It's been quite some time. _

It hadn't been an easy decision on either of their parts, but Angela insisted. She filed for divorce, listing some reason or another - it didn't really matter. She was only looking out for the two people most important to her. Like he said, a true angel. They remained best friends to this day, and Angela had love in her life, in the form of a younger artist who had long admired her work. They painted together and their house was adventurous and filled with light and laughter. Jack felt no guilt over what had happened. Their lives had worked out fine.

The moment he was a free man, he approached Temperance, with Angela cheering him on. She was at her lonely house when he'd knocked, and she'd opened the door, her red hair wet and no makeup on. Just pure Temperance, no fussiness and no pretence.

"Jack?" she had said, confused. "What are you doing - "

He swept forward, gathering her into his arms and kissing her. Her lips tasted like honey and her breath like coffee. At first, she seemed stunned, but then fell into him, dissolving in his embrace, and kissed him back as they stood on her doorstep.

It had been a brief courtship. He essentially lived at her house and they sat on the very porch swing he was sitting on now, talking late into the night and early into the morning. After a month, he asked her to marry her by a mysterious gravesite in upstate New York. She had immediately said yes.

Secretly, he congratulated himself on his work on her. He had brought her out of her shell in a way that Seeley had never been able to, and while she remained her adorably formal speech and her logical demeanour, she became less afraid to talk about what she was feeling. She seemed to _feel _more. He had cast away her demons and for this, he thanked himself, for her sake.

It had grown dark now. His mind was filled with images: the first time they made love; the sight of Temperance, pregnant with their first child; Temperance, singing to herself as she made her daughters banana pancakes. These were the memories he held dear.

In the darkness, a car turned into the drive way, its headlights blinding him for an instant. He rose carefully from the porch swing - damn arthritis, it had hit him in his early forties, and now his knee always predicted rain - and walked to the car, opening the door for her as he did every night.

"Jack," she said, as she always did, "I'm perfectly capable of opening the door on my own."

"Good evening to you too, Princess," he replied, smiling. She had dirt on her face and her button-up shirt was rolled up to the elbows. Just a tinge of grey had touched her hair, and there were laugh lines around her blue-green eyes. This was the way he liked her best. "How was your day?"

"Very interesting," she replied, taking his hand and walking towards the house with him. "The body seems to date back several thousand years and is very primitive in its bone structure. It's actually quite ground-breaking. I have to head out early to the institute tomorrow to do more tests, but I have a good feeling about this one."

They sat on their old, favourite haunt and watched the remainder of the sun die out. Perhaps, when it grew dark, they would go inside and Jack would talk to Temperance as she showered. Perhaps they would make love and fall asleep together. But for now, it was enough to hold his wife and listen to her words. After all, they would always have tomorrow.

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**Any reviews are appreciated.**

**Madeline **


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